Page 110 of Winning the Nightcap

My mouth drops open and a small squeak comes out. I turn around to find Aiden waiting for me. He pulls me close and I revel in the feel of his arms locked securely around me.

“I love you, Bec,” he says with a look of pure joy.

His words send my heart racing. I know with all that Aiden has been through, he wouldn’t say those words to me unless he was ready, unless he meant them. Hearing him say that he loves me sends a wave of relief through me at the realization that he has come out on theother side of what happened before. I hate that his past has caused him to feel so uncertain…uncertain that he deserves to find his own happiness.

I used to question if that kind of happiness was meant for me too. But Aiden has shown me that we deserve to find it together.

“I love you too,” I say with a smile just as bright as his beaming on my face.

He rests his forehead against mine, holds my face in his hands, and presses his lips softly against mine. It’s not enough. I loop my arms around his neck and pull him toward me so I can deepen our kiss. When our lips pull apart, we stand there for a few minutes while he holds me close in his arms.

“My place is closer. How fast can you get us there?” I ask.

He arches an eyebrow at me. “Only one way to find out.” He turns around and brings his arms out to his sides. “Hop on.”

“I was kidding, Aiden. We can walk,” I say with a laugh.

“Or we can do it my way. Now wrap those pretty legs around me. Let’s go, love.” That little word. That little, huge word. Hearing it from Aiden sends my stomach tumbling over itself. I step closer and Aiden lowers himself so I can hop onto his back. He carries me all the way back to my apartment faster than should be possible, and I can’t help the grin I wear as I cling to his body and laugh the entire way home.

* * *

If I thought carrying me all the way to my apartment on his back was enough to tire Aiden out, I was wrong. Maybe we’re both riding the high of telling each other how we feel, but when we finally get through my front door, Aiden drops me to my feet and backs me against the wall in my living room before I can say a word. He holds my head inhis hands, his eyes searching mine. With one look, he strips me bare. This man knows every part of my head, my heart, and my body, and the thought doesn’t scare me. It fills me with warmth. It fills me with a sense of belonging.

“Every day, Bec. I’m going to tell youevery fucking dayfor the rest of my life how much I love you,” he says before attacking my mouth with a kiss so hungry, so fierce it takes my breath away.

“I love you too,” I say when he moves to kiss my neck. “So much.” With one hand, he threads his fingers into my scalp and he tightens his grip just enough to draw a moan from me. His other hand palms my breast. My clit is pulsing in anticipation.

“Off,” I demand, tugging at his pants and kicking off my shoes.

Aiden laughs. “Hands up, beautiful.”

I lift my hands without hesitation and he rips my shirt off before pinning my hands above my head against the wall. He leans down, his voice rumbling in my ear. “Turn around.”

Aiden’s grip on my wrists is loose enough to allow me to turn toward the wall. I turn my head, resting my cheek against the cool surface. “Stay still,” he says, running his hands from my wrists down to my waist, before snaking them to the front of my stomach. He undoes my pants and pulls them and my thong down my thighs slowly before having me step out of them. I can feel my chest rising and falling. I’m already breathless, panting and turned the fuck on.

I yelp in surprise when I feel him kissing my ass while gripping and squeezing my cheeks where they meet the tops of my thighs. I tilt my head to rest my temple against the wall, my skin buzzing with tension. Aiden returns to stand behind me and undoes the clasp on my bra without any trouble.

I’m completely naked, my bra only hanging on from the straps. Losing my last shred of patience, I whirl away from the wall and toss my bra to the side. I run my hands under his shirt, up his muscledabdomen and chest before tugging his shirt over his head and onto the floor. Aiden seems to run out of patience as well because he doesn’t wait for me to help him before taking off the rest of his clothes. The sight of his hard body ignites my arousal into an uncontrolled fire.

I press my palms against his chest and push him backward until he falls onto my couch. I straddle his thighs and suck his bottom lip into my mouth, biting it and running my hands from the sides of his neck into the hair at the base of his skull. He groans into our kiss. His rough hands grip my thighs tightly before he squeezes my ass and pulls my center against him.

“Fuck, Bec. I love you so much.”

“Show me,” I whisper against his lips as I sink down onto his thick cock, causing us both to moan. We lock eyes and hold each other close as our bodies melt together. I’ve never felt this close to him. I know I’m exactly where I want to be…exactly where I’m meant to be.

Aiden pulses up into me as I drop onto him, matching his rhythm. I rotate my hips to grind against him. His thickness causes the perfect stretch. When he sucks my nipple into his mouth, I let my head drop back, looking up to the ceiling. He runs his hands up my back and grips my shoulders, pulling me down onto him harder.

“Oh fuck, Aiden. That feels so good.”

He hugs me tightly against his chest and somehow lowers himself off the couch to kneel on the floor. I cling to him as he lowers my body to lie on the living room rug, all the while his cock is still hard and pulsing inside of me. He hovers his body above me before thrusting into me, working us both into a needy push and pull. He drives against my clit and my orgasm races up my thighs before exploding through my veins. He follows me over the edge, calling out my name. When he falls to my side, he pulls me alongside him, no space between us. We lie there together, in a heap on the floor of my small apartment. Secluded in our own little bubble of the world together.

Both imperfect but growing together every day into the people we want to be. For the first time, it feels like the person at my side is going to help me be the person I want to be rather than hinder that progress. Aiden makes me better and I hope to do the same for him by holding each other when we need support, challenging each other when we need the push, and loving each other through it all.

Our breathing slows and I hear him taking a deep breath, breathing in before kissing my forehead.

“Thank you, Bec. For taking a chance on me. For not giving up on me. For loving me.”

“Like you said, Aiden. I’m going to love you every day. I want them all,” I say. He places a light kiss on my nose.

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